


They're Family

by daughterofathena2



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: AU, Braavos, F/M, Game of Thrones - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-05-21
Packaged: 2019-11-08 21:33:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17988905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daughterofathena2/pseuds/daughterofathena2
Summary: Gendry decides to leave his life in Kings Landing in search of...he doesn't know. He finds himself in Braavos and stumbles across a familiar face.(I.E an AU beginning during the time that Arya is training to be a faceless man)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Game of Thrones fanfic, and my first ever fanfic on Archive of Our Own! Not entirely sure how it works but I'm figuring it out! Any reviews would be very much appreciated!!

He didn’t really know what he was doing here. Things got dicey in King’s Landing, he had to get out again. As Gendry gathered his things he thought once again of the girl he left behind. The girl who was probably dead.  
  
Arya Stark.  
  
He didn’t really know what happened to her, but after hearing about the Red Wedding and knowing that that’s where she was headed, he just assumed the worst. She was dead, and he would never get to apologize for how their last conversation went.  
  
But he couldn’t stay in King’s Landing, had never wanted to go north to the Wall, where else could he go? He knew no one in Dorne, didn’t want to go near Winterfell. Then he remembered the man who had helped them escape, he said he was from Braavos. Gendry didn’t really know why, he couldn’t even remember the man’s name, but he wanted to find him.  
  
Taking the war hammer with him, Gendry departed the forge that day for the last time and set off for Braavos, hoping he would get there soon.  
  
Gendry arrived in Braavos, his war hammer slung across his back, keeping his hands free while being easily within reach. He now realized he had no idea where to start looking for the strange assassin and began to just wander the streets. He didn’t pay any attention to the beggars lining the streets, there were beggars in every city, one learns to ignore them. He walked past a man bending to put coins in a girl’s bowl and only stopped when he heard her speak.  
  
“Thank you,”  
  
He knew that voice. Gendry whirled around and looked at the girl.  
  
“Arya” he breathed out, in shock and relief. She looked up, startled, and he looked into her blank eyes.  
  
“Wh-who’s there?” she stuttered, fear lacing her voice.  
  
“It’s me Arya, it’s Gendry, my gods what happened to your eyes?” he knelt in front of her and took her face into his hands.  
  
“Gendry? No. Gendry’s dead,” said Arya.  
  
“No, I’m not, I’m right here, come on let’s get you something to eat and you can tell me what happened,” Gendry reached for her hands but she pulled away and shrank back.  
  
“Arry I know you’re scared, I can’t imagine what it would be like to lose your sight, is there anything I can do to prove to you that it’s me?” asked Gendry.  
  
“Who am I?” asked Arya.  
  
“Who…What?” asked Gendry.  
  
“To you, who am I to you?” she asked again. Gendry answered immediately.  
  
“You’re Arya Stark, daughter of Eddard Stark, of Winterfell. You’re the she-wolf, the bravest girl I’ve ever met. You’re m’lady… you’re my family, Arya,” he reached out again, taking her hands in his and she didn’t pull away.  
  
“How did Arya Stark first meet you?” asked Arya, Gendry chuckled at the memory.  
  
“I was loading a wagon, you were backing Hot Pie up, threatening him with Needle because he had tried to take it from you. You backed him up until he bumped into me. I told him to fuck off and bother someone his own size. When he ran I asked you where you got Needle, you claimed it was a gift. I told you where I came from. Then Yoren got us moving to the wall. I stuck by you after that,” said Gendry.  
  
“Gendry?” asked Arya.  
  
“It’s me, Arya please what’s happened?” asked Gendry again.  
  
“You have to go, leave me here!” said Arya,  
  
“What? No! I’m not leaving you!”  
  
“Why not? You’ve done it before,” snapped Arya  
  
“I didn’t want to, Arry, I’m sorry,”  
  
“Please Gendry, if she finds you with me she’ll kill you,”  
  
“Who?”  
  
“Me,” came a voice behind him, Arya stilled. Gendry turned to see a little blonde girl holding two staffs.  
  
“And who the hell are you?”  
  
“No one,” answered the girl.  
  
“Alright, what does No one want with Arya?” asked Gendry.  
  
“Other way around,”  
  
“You the one that made her blind?” asked Gendry, the girl smirked.  
  
“She did that, she failed the test. She wasn’t ready,” said the girl.  
  
“Ready for what?”  
  
“To be no one,” said Arya.  
  
“But you’re not no one, what does that even mean?” asked Gendry.  
  
“Enough questions, leave us,” ordered the girl.  
  
“Not a chance,” said Gendry.  
  
“Gendry, please,” said Arya.  
  
“I’m not leaving you, not again Arya,” said Gendry.  
  
“She’ll kill you,” said Arya,  
  
“She can try,” said Gendry. He took his Warhammer in his hands, the girl just smiled.  
  
“Wait! You can’t, he hasn’t been named,” protested Arya,  
  
“But he has, Gendry Waters has been named,” said the girl, she tossed aside one of the staffs and got ready to fight.  
  
“Sure you won’t need that?” asked Gendry, the girl simply smirked again before swinging her staff. Gendry blocked the swing with ease and pushed her back. He swung the hammer over his head, aiming for hers but she ducked and spun around him, unsheathing a dagger. She lunged at him, tackling Gendry to the ground. She was faster, but he was stronger. He struggled with her, trying to fight her off not letting her stab him.  
  
Arya felt along the wall until she found the staff the girl had dropped before the fight. Following the sounds of Gendry’s grunts of effort and the girl’s as well. Figuring out where they were, Arya swung the staff, striking the girl in the head. The girl’s body fell down the stairs.  
  
“Are you alright?” asked Arya.  
  
“You could’ve hit me with that,” said Gendry, getting to his feet.  
  
“But I didn’t, is she dead?”  
  
“I’ll go check,” said Gendry, he didn’t need to go near her body to see that she was dead. Her eyes were open and glassy.  
  
“She’s dead,” said Gendry,  
“Are you hurt?” asked Arya.  
  
“No, you?”  
  
“Besides the obvious, you mean?” she quipped.  
  
“Yeah”  
  
“No, I’m not hurt,” said Arya. Without warning, she dropped the staff and launched herself into his arms, he hugged her tightly to him.  
  
“I thought you were dead, I thought the Red Witch killed you,” said Arya.  
  
“She wanted to, she tried to. A man named Ser Davos helped me escape. I went back to Kings Landing for a time, everyone thought I was dead thanks to you so it was safe. But things have been getting worse again, so I decided to come here. I remembered the man who saved us, and how he had told you to come here if you had ever needed a place to go. Of course I didn’t think I would actually find you, I thought you were dead as well m’lady. I thought you were at the Red Wedding,”  
  
“Don’t call me m’lady,” growled Arya.  
  
“As M’lady commands,” he whispered into her ear, still holding her close.  
  
“And I was there, at the Red Wedding,” Gendry sighed and slowly put Arya down.  
  
“Let’s get you some food, you’re skinnier than when I last saw you and I didn’t think that would be possible,” said Gendry. He took her hand in his and began to lead her away when a man he recognized stepped in front of them.  
  
“You,” said Gendry.  
  
“Is the girl dead?” asked the man, ignoring Gendry and looking at Arya.  
  
“Yes,” answered Arya,  
  
“And who are you?”  
  
“Arya Stark,”  
  
“Is the girl sure?”  
  
“The girl is sure, the girl would like her eyes back,”  
  
“The girl did not earn her eyes,” said the man.  
  
“What do you mean? Arya what’s going on what did you get yourself into?” asked Gendry,  
  
“It’s a really long story, Gendry,” muttered Arya.  
  
“The girl failed the test, she must earn another chance,” said Jaqon  
  
“The girl does not want a second chance. My name is Arya Stark, second daughter of Eddard Stark, of Winterfell. I want to go home,”  
  
“Look, either you help her get her sight back or you get the hell out of our way,” said Gendry,  
  
“The girl must earn her eyes,” repeated the man,  
  
“How,”  
  
“A face is required,”  
  
“Could you be any more cryptic?” asked Gendry.  
  
Arya sighed.  
  
“Gendry, get the body and get me a knife,” said Arya, Gendry just stared at her  
  
“Just do it please, I’ll explain when all this is over,” said Arya.  
  
Gendry sighed  
  
“Alright,” he turned away from her and hurried back to the girl’s body, picking up her knife on the way.  
  
“This has to be the weirdest day of my life,” he muttered under his breath as he carried both back to Arya and the man,  
  
“Here,” he pressed the dagger into her hand and laid the girl at her feet.  
  
“What are you going to do?”  
  
“He needs a face for the hall,” explained Arya. She knelt down and felt for the girl’s face with her left hand, the dagger clutched in her right. Gendry watched with a mix of awe and horror as Arya carefully cut around the girls face before peeling the thing off. She stood back up and began to hand the face over, but Gendry stopped her.  
  
“Her eyes first, we don’t want the face but you do. We want her eyes,” said Gendry. The man smiled and reached into his bag, pulling out the vial.  
  
“The girl drinks this, the girl gets her eyes back,” he said. Arya reached out her hand for the vial and the man opened it for her before placing it in her hand.  
  
“Drink it all,” Arya obediently tipped her head back and drank the contents of the vial in one gulp. She shuddered and gasped, dropping the vial. The man was uninterested, he took the face out of her hand and left the pair. Gendry reached his hands out, trying to steady Arya as her whole body shook.  
  
“Arya? Are you alright?” Talk to me,” she collapsed to the ground, her eyes rolled to the back of her head as she shook.  
  
“Arya!”  
  
Just as soon as it started, the shaking stopped, slowly Arya opened her eyes. Gendry was relieved to see her grey eyes stare up at him.  
  
“Your hair is shorter, looks stupid,” remarked Arya.  
  
“You shouldn’t insult people who are bigger than you,” said Gendry, smiling softly.  
  
“Then I wouldn’t get to insult anyone,” Arya smirked back at him  
  
“How are you feeling?” asked Gendry,  
  
“I’m alright,” Gendry helped her up.  
  
“You ready to tell me what the hell all that was about?” asked Gendry.  
  
“I told you, it’s a long story. Are you sure you want to hear it?”  
  
“Every word, I meant what I said Arry. I’m not leaving you, not unless you want me to. Never again,” said Gendry. He looked into her eyes as he spoke to her, his hands on her shoulders, urging her to believe him.  
  
“Never again,” echoed Arya. Gendry smiled down at her,  
  
“Come on, Arry, what do you want to eat?” asked Gendry.  
  
“Food,”  
  
“Care to be more specific?” smirked Gendry.  
  
“Gendry, I haven’t eaten in three days. Food is food,”  
  
“Right, let’s go then,”  
  
They sat down on the dock with bread and bowls of stew.  
  
“Whenever you’re ready, Arya,” said Gendry in between mouthfuls.  
  
“You first,” said Arya  
  
“I told you my story, Ser Davos helped me escape from the Red Witch. He let me out of my cell in the dead of night, led me to the sea, gave me a boat and told me which direction to row,” said Gendry.  
  
“But what happened before that? With the Red Witch? What did she do to you?” asked Arya, Gendry sighed.  
  
“She wanted to kill me,” he said after a minute, choosing his words carefully.  
  
“Why?”  
  
“Same reason the Gold Cloaks were after me in Kings Landing, I’m Robert Baratheon’s bastard son. One of them, anyway,” he said,  
  
“What did she care about that?”  
  
“She was helping Stannis Baratheon. He wanted the iron throne. She had convinced him to use some kind of magic. King’s blood is strong, or sacred I guess. I don’t really know, but she wanted my blood. First she tied me up and put leaches on me,”  
  
“She tied you up? Or did you mean her guards? She didn’t seem that strong, not physically,” said Arya.  
  
Gendry shifted uncomfortably and didn’t answer, unsure of what to say, Arya scoffed.  
  
“You know, I remember the last conversation we had. I told you that I didn’t like the Red Woman, and you and Anguy laughed because you thought I didn’t like her because she was pretty, very pretty,” pointed out Arya. Gendry sighed before saying quickly  
  
“She seduced me, that’s how she got me onto the bed. It was all so new to me and I wasn’t really aware with what was going on. I didn’t even see the ropes until they were around my wrists,” said Gendry.  
  
“And after she tied you up, she put the leaches on you?”  
  
“Yeah, and Stannis Baratheon and Ser Davos came into the room. After a few minutes, she took the leaches off and gave them to him, he dropped them into a fire and said some names,” said Gendry.  
  
“What were the names?”  
  
“Joffrey Baratheon, Balon Greyjoy…” said Gendry  
  
“And? Three leaches, three names. Who was the third?” asked Arya.  
  
“Robb Stark,” answered Gendry after a minute.  
  
Arya didn’t respond for a minute, Gendry sat still waiting, almost holding his breath before she said.  
  
“What do you think that means? Do you believe in blood magic?” she asked.  
  
“I don’t know what I believe, but I’m glad I told you,” said Gendry, Arya nodded.  
  
“Is that everything?” she asked.  
  
“Yeah, your turn Arry. What in the seven kingdoms happened to you?” asked Gendry.


	2. Her Story

“I don’t know where to start,” said Arya  
  
“I want to hear everything, Arya, start from when I last saw you,” said Gendry. Arya didn’t answer him, she seemed almost lost in thought as she finished her food.  
  
“Are you done with your food? Can we walk somewhere? I need to get something,” she said.  
  
“Yeah, of course,” said Gendry. The pair stood up and Arya led the way through the city.  
  
“Where are we going, Arry?” asked Gendry.  
  
“I hid something near the sea at the docks, I need to get it before we leave,” said Arya.  
  
“What?”  
  
“You’ll see, I’ll tell you my story after we get it,”  
  
It didn’t take the pair long to reach the docks, Arya quickly found her hiding spot and moved the rocks one by one, finally pulling out her sword.  
  
“A sword?! Arya why on earth would you hide a sword instead of using it? Especially in the condition you were in?” asked Gendry.  
  
“It’s not just a sword, Gendry, it’s Needle,” said Arya.  
  
“Needle, the sword your brother gave you? But how…? Polliver took that off you when he captured all of us for Harrenhall,”  
  
“To become No One, a faceless man, one must give up everything about themselves. Everything that says who they are. Their clothes, their things, even their name. I was training to be no one. I came down here and threw my clothes and money into the sea, but I couldn’t throw away Needle. Not after everything. So I hid it instead,”  
  
“Why did you want to become No one?” asked Gendry,  
  
“Because being Arya Stark was too painful,” she answered, moving to sit on the dock letting her legs swing over the edge. Gendry settled next to her.  
  
“After they sold you to the Witch, I escaped from the Brotherhood. My freedom didn’t last long, the Hound captured me not long after. I fought him at first, I thought he was going to take me to the Lannisters. But instead he planned to take me to the Twins, to my mother and brother. We got there in the middle of the slaughter. I watched as they paraded my brother’s body around with his direwolf’s head sewn on where his used to be. And my mother…Clegane had to knock me out to stop me from charging in there and getting myself killed. He got us out of there. A few days later, we came across some Frey men who had stopped to make camp. They were laughing about what happened to my family, about how they cut my mother’s throat to the bone. I walked to their camp and asked for food, while the man was distracted I stabbed him in the back multiple times with a knife I had taken off Clegane when he hadn’t been paying attention, he killed the other men before they could react to me killing the first,” Arya stopped there and looked at Gendry in the eye.  
  
“Why’d you stop?” asked Gendry.  
  
“I’m waiting to see if you run,” said Arya.  
  
“You’ve killed men,” said Gendry simply.  
  
“Yes,”  
  
“But only because you had a damn good reason, Arry, I don’t judge you for that, no honorable man laughs about another’s death. Enemy or no,” said Gendry. Gendry hesitantly took Arya’s hand in his.  
  
“I meant what I said earlier, I’m not going anywhere unless you’re with me,” he said.  
  
“After we killed the Frey men Clegane decided to take me to the Eyrie, to my Aunt Lysa. We stopped in a tavern, and I see Polliver,” Gendry nodded to show her he remembered.  
  
“Polliver recognized Clegane and they started to fight. A brawl broke out through the entire tavern. The Hound killed most of the men. Soon it was just Polliver left. I took a longsword off a body and slashed him through the leg first, then I took Needle off his hip. I made sure he knew exactly who I was before I killed him. He was the first name I crossed off my list. I’ve killed others too, like one of the men who were in the cage when we were traveling to the wall. He had threatened to ‘fuck me bloody.’ We make it to the Eyrie only to find out that my Aunt had just died a few days before. I couldn’t help it, I just started laughing because all of Clegane’s plans were getting fucked up one by one. Not long after, we’re giving the horses a break when a pair comes upon us, a Lady Brienne of Tarth and her squire, Podrick. She tells me that she swore to my mother that she would find and protect my sister Sansa and me. But I didn’t believe her because she was carrying Lannister steel. Brienne and Clegane fought, and Brienne won. I left Clegane for dead and decided to come here, and I started training to become a faceless man. They are assassins. They are called faceless because they can take on the face of another person. By taking their face they become them. Training is hard, we played a game called the game of faces. It’s to make you better at lying, if you get caught in a lie you lose. If you lose, you get hit. After I proved I was able to lie, Jaqon gave me a target. I pretended I was a merchant selling oysters to get close to him, the plan was eventually I would sell him some that had been poisoned. But I got distracted when I saw Meryn Trant. He was on my list for killing Syrio, the man who first taught me how to use Needle properly. Syrio died protecting me, so I could escape the Gold Cloaks in Kings landing the day they arrested my father. I found out that Trant liked torturing little girls, so I stole a face from the hall to become one. Again, I made sure he knew who I was when I killed him. But I took the face, and to anyone but the faceless men, the faces are poison. That’s how I was blinded. The blindness was the punishment, I had failed the test. The girl I killed today, she was also training to become a faceless man. She always told Jaqan I wasn’t ready, that I wasn’t right. It was her I would play the game of faces with, and she came every day with those staffs while I was blind. Because of her I learned to fight and survive without my eyes. Ready to run yet?” asked Arya  
  
Gendry had never let go of her hand, and now he used his other to brush some of the hair back from her face, looking her in the eyes he said  
  
“Quite a story Arry, and for the last bloody time I’m not going anywhere without you, so where are we going?”  
  
“My list isn’t done,” said Arya.  
  
“Who’s on it?” asked Gendry  
  
“Walder Frey, Cersei Lannister, The Mountain, Ilyn Payne, Tywin Lannister, Melisandre, Beric, and Thoros,” said Arya, Gendry looked at her in surprise.  
  
“The last three are new,” he stated.  
  
“They’re on my list for what they did to you. Even though you didn’t want me, I considered us a family,”  
  
“That’s not true! I always wanted you, Arry,”  
  
“Then why leave me? Before they sold you, you were going to leave me to join them,”  
  
“Do you think everything we went through together, how we felt about each other, would have mattered to your Lady Mother and your Lord Brother? Seven hells they were calling your brother King of the North which rightfully made you a princess. What would people say about a princess and a bastard blacksmith? We wouldn’t have been allowed to have any sort of relationship Arya. I would have had to watch you grow up and marry some Lord and bear his children, and I couldn’t do it Arya. I’m sorry,”  
  
“I wouldn’t have let that happen,”  
  
“You wouldn’t have been able to stop it, even if you wanted to,” said Gendry softly.  
  
“So you gave up without trying?”  
  
“I didn’t realize what I would lose. I thought I would gain a family by joining the Brotherhood, but I lost one instead,” said Gendry.  
  
“I’ve been slowly losing family members since the day I left Winterfell. First Jon when he went to the Wall, then my father, Bran and Rickon, Robb and my mother. I haven’t seen Sansa since the day they killed my father. Then I lost you,” said Arya.  
  
“And now you’ve got me back, so let’s go find the others,” said Gendry.  
  
“We leave tomorrow,” agreed Arya.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not feeling great about this chapter, but I promise the next one will be better! Please leave a comment!


	3. Traveling to the Twins

Arya and Gendry were debating on how best to get out of Braavos.

“You know Arry, throwing your money into the sea may have been the dumbest thing you’ve ever done,”

“Shut up, Gendry, and don’t call me ‘Arry’” snapped Arya. The pair stopped walking and Gendry placed his hand on her arm.

“Why not?” 

“It’s been so long since I’ve been called by my name, by Arya. I miss it. I want to be Arya Stark again,”

“Alright Arya, how do you suggest we get out of here? As we have no coin for passage, sneaking onto a ship won’t work we’ll be thrown overboard before we leave the dock,” 

“There are ways to make coin quick you know,” said Arya, quirking her eyebrows at him.

“No, absolutely not,” said Gendry, shaking his head at her.

“Not what I mean you stupid Bull, just need to pick a few pockets is all, the docks are the perfect place for it, so many people I won’t be noticed,” said Arya.

“Well it’s the best plan we’ve had yet, let’s do it,” agreed Gendry.

“Have you ever picked a pocket before?”

“’Course I have!” 

Arya and Gendry worked the crowd at the docks together, weaving in and out of people. Within an hour they had enough to book a cabin on a ship headed back to Westeros.

“I got more than you did,” gloated Arya.

“Shut up Arya. Come on let’s find a ship,” said Gendry, grinning at her. 

The pair head back down the docks, approaching sailors and asking where they were headed. It took some time, but finally they found one.

“Excuse me, Sir, where are you headed?” Arya asked the man.

“The Twins, we have provisions for Lord Frey’s feast,” 

“We’re trying to get there, we have family who serve Lord Frey and jobs waiting for us ourselves. Could we buy passage, please?” asked Arya.

“No cabins left, sorry lass,”

“We don’t need a cabin! Just a few square feet of space, maybe something to eat every now and then, we won’t be in the way we promise,” said Arya.

“And I can help sail the ship, whatever you need,” said Gendry. The man looked Gendry up and down, taking note of the size of his arms.

“Well alright, get on, and you’ll pay up front!” 

“Thank you,” chorused Arya and Gendry, they hurried on board.

The ship sailed within the hour, they would be at the Twins in a month.

“I wonder what the feast is for,” asked Gendry.

“He’s probably getting married again, it’s his favorite pastime, good thing too it will be a good cover, we’ll be able to slip in amongst the other servants. He always hires extras so they won’t take notice of a few new faces among them,” answered Arya.

“Won’t he recognize you?” 

“Doubtful, he hasn’t seen me since I was seven, when he came to Winterfell with all the other Lords to show their support, I was just too young for him to take notice of me, enjoyed looking at Sansa however, though she was only eleven,”

“Sounds like a disgusting man,” 

“That he is, but we shouldn’t be talking about this on the ship, who knows who could be loyal to him,”

“Alright, can we discuss how we’re going to leave the Twins, when all is said and done?” 

“By horse, won’t be too difficult,” answered Arya. 

“Right, let’s just forget about the soldiers and knights who will definitely try and stop us, close down the whole place the second their lord is dead,” said Gendry sarcastically.

“Gendry,” said Arya, staring at him pointedly, Gendry looked at her for a second before he realized what she meant.

“You’re not planning on leaving anyone alive,” 

“They were all at the Red Wedding, took part in it. Or they knew about it, and still swore allegiance to him after the fact. They celebrated Gendry,” 

“Alright, we need a plan then, unless you have one of them too?”

“I’ll be working as a kitchen maid, it’s as simple as poisoning the wine. He doesn’t let his women drink it anyway, it’s only for him and his men,” her voice lowered in pitch so Gendry had to lean close to her to hear “but I’ll make sure he gets a different cup, I want him alive, I want him to watch his men die, his sons, before I slit his throat,” she said, anger brimming in her voice.  
Gendry gulped and nodded slowly, as much as she may be scaring him at this moment, he wasn’t going to leave her, he was going to help her get her family back and do everything on the way.

“What do you want me to do?” he asked. 

“Get the horses ready, make sure the stable boys are preoccupied or knocked out, and if something goes wrong don’t do anything stupid like coming in after me,” 

“Arya if something starts to go wrong, I will come in after you, because I know you would do the same for me,”

“Gendry…” protested Arya.

“Not a fucking negotiation, Stark, how long is it going to take for me to get through your head that I’ll die before I leave you again,” said Gendry, Arya just stared at him. 

“How good are you with that Warhammer?” Arya finally asked after a few minutes.

“Unfortunately, I’m sure you’ll find out,” 

That night, they joined the other sailors on the deck for supper.

“Brother and sister?” asked one of the sailors, gesturing between Arya and Gendry.

“No,” answered Arya.

“You’re not married, are ya?” asked the same sailor.

“No,” answered Gendry this time.

“Why all the questions?” asked Arya.

“Just being friendly, so what’s a pretty young thing like you doing traveling with him? Bet I could show you a better time,” said the sailor. Gendry tensed and shifted slightly closer to Arya, the movement was barely noticeable but the sailor was watching them so closely he saw it.

“Ooh, protective are we?” 

“I don’t need anyone’s protection, I’ll slit your throat myself if you come near me,” warned Arya.

“Ah come on, I watched you give all your money to the captain, bet you could use some more before you get off this ship…”

“Are you trying to give me more reasons to slit your throat?” said Arya at the same time Gendry said “Back off,” 

“I don’t take orders from kids like you, I give them,” said the man, he stood up and started to stumble towards them, he was clearly drunk.

“Last warning, back off,” said Gendry, putting his hand out in front of Arya to let her know he had this one. The sailor drew his sword and raised it in attack. In a matter of seconds Gendry had his hammer in his hands and swung it, bludgeoning the man’s head. The man fell dead, and Arya stood so she was next to Gendry.

“I could have taken care of that you know,”

“You’re the one who wanted to know if I was any good with a hammer,” 

The other sailors didn’t say anything, some just stared in shock at the pair while others continued eating as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. The ship’s captain emerged from below deck and sighed when he saw the body.

“What happened?”

“He attacked me and my friend, I was merely defending myself,” said Gendry. The captain nodded.

“He usually caused trouble, I assume he was drunk? I’ve been looking for an excuse to get him off this ship, though I didn’t imagine it quite being like this. Chuck him overboard we don’t have any room for a body. You two can have his cabin, and boy you can take over his job until we dock at the Twins,” said the Captain before disappearing back below deck.

“That could have been a lot worse, you shouldn’t have killed him, Gendry,”

“He wanted you, and he didn’t look like he was about to take no for an answer, I know you don’t need my protection but doesn’t mean I don’t want to give it. Now come on, help me with the body,” said Gendry. Together Arya and Gendry heaved the body overboard.

“We should find his cabin, best not rejoin those guys tonight,” said Arya.

“Alright,” 

Gendry and Arya found the cabin, walking in to find a bed and the man’s belongings lying around. 

“We should clean this up, set it aside in case he had family we can send it to,” said Arya. 

By the time they finished, both were exhausted.

“You take the bed Arya, I’ll sleep on the floor,”

“Don’t be stupid, the bed is big enough for two, and it’s not like we haven’t shared a bed before,” argued Arya.

“We’re not kids any more, M’Lady, I won’t ruin your reputation,”

“Gendry, we’re already traveling alone and sharing a cabin, and besides no one on board knows I’m a lady. And also, what reputation? I’m presumed dead, I haven’t been able to get in contact with anyone since I left King’s Landing. Just get in the bed Gendry, I’m too tired to argue,” Gendry opened his mouth to argue with her some more, but paused at the look in her eyes.

“Please, Gendry,” he closed his mouth and nodded. Arya began to take off some clothes, leaving her in just her small clothes. Gendry gulped and hurriedly did the same. He let Arya settle down in the bed first before climbing in the other side slowly, careful not to touch her though the bed really wasn’t that big.

“I never wanted a featherbed, you know,” said Arya sleepily, drifting off to sleep. Gendry sighed and closed his eyes. The events of the past few days washing over him. It couldn’t have been just the other day he thought she was dead, that it was too painful for him to even think of her. And now here she is, alive, a woman grown and sharing his bed. Very slowly, with these thoughts in his head, Gendry drifted off to sleep as well. 

The next morning, Arya woke to a feeling of pressure on her waist, looking down she noticed Gendry’s arm had wrapped around her in the night. Gendry woke up a moment later, as soon as he realized where his arm was, he leapt off the bed as if it were on fire,

“Sorry,” he mumbled sheepily, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

“Gendry what’s wrong? Why are you so nervous around me? It didn’t used to be like this,”

“Come on Arya, let’s not do this now,” said Gendry.

“No, tell me! We have to do this now, whatever ‘this’ is! You’ve been acting weird ever since that drunk tried to take me to bed last night,” 

“It’s nothing Arya, nothing!” insisted Gendry.

“You’re lying to me,” said Arya, blocking the door.

“Let me out, please,” 

“No,”

“Arya!”

“Gendry!”

The two stared at each other for a few minutes before Gendry gave in

“Ugh fine, but I doubt you’ll like the answer!” Gendry turned around and sat once more on the bed, head in his hands. Arya slowly moved to sit next to him.

“I thought you were dead, Arya, and it nearly killed me. I blamed myself, I thought about it every day! Wondering what happened, how it happened. Did they kill you first or did you have to watch your brother and mother die? Did they…do anything to you before you died, or after? It tortured me, Arya. Even now I know nothing happened, I can’t help thinking about what might happen. I just got you back I don’t want to lose you again. You’re one of the only people who have ever cared for me, and I…I care for you, Arya. I killed that man last night because I wanted to protect you, yes, but I was also jealous.

“So, you care about me?”

“Yes,”

“Did you hear what I said last night? Or were you already asleep?” 

“That you never wanted a featherbed? Yeah I heard it,” 

“My father once told me that I would grow up to marry a Lord, live in his castle and bear his sons. That was the life you didn’t want to see me live. And it’s not the life I want to live,”

“What are you saying, Arya?”

“That I care for you, too,” 

There were no other incidents throughout the month they were on the ship, Arya and Gendry kept to themselves and did the work that was asked of them. They sparred in their spare time, Gendry with his warhammer and Arya needle. While Arya won most often, Gendry did manage to get her every now and then. As the month past they grew more comfortable with each other. When they reached the twins the captain approached them.

“You’re good workers, both of you, will you be needing passage anywhere else? I leave here tomorrow, I’ll pay you this time,”

“No, thank you, but as we told you when we boarded we have jobs for us here,” said Arya.

“Good luck to the two of you then,”

Arya and Gendry made their way to the castle.

“Getting in will be one of the hardest bits, hopefully we’ll get lucky,” said Arya.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I told you he hires extra servants, they come by the wagon. If we come across one we can trail behind it or even hop on and if they ask we can just say we got lost traveling with another group,” 

“You’ve got everything figured out, huh?”

“I’ve had years to think about it, this wedding just gave me the opportunity I needed,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The events of the Twins will be in the next chapter, I still have to figure that bit out so... Plus this chapter was getting kind of long. I hope you enjoyed it!


	4. House Frey

It happened just as Arya said it would. They quickly found a wagon heading for the castle with only two men in it. Posing as two new servants, Arya and Gendry hopped onto the back of it and got a free ride to the castle.

“When we get there, I’ll head to the kitchen and you get to the stables,” said Arya.

“I’ve just thought of something, our weapons. It’s a miracle this lot haven’t said anything! How are we going to get them past the guards at the gate?” asked Gendry.

“Needle can be concealed easily enough,” said Arya. “And my hammer? It’s taller than you are! There’s no reason for a stable boy to have one like it, and no way I’m leaving it behind,” said Gendry. Arya thought for a minute.

“Ok...ok. Forget the stable boy thing. Feasts include entertainment, go in as a fighter. Walder Frey is… eccentric… in that way. Anyone can enter you don’t have to be noble or rich. And the winner gets to join in the feast, you’ll be right there in the room,” said Arya.

“Good,” Gendry nodded. Hesitantly, he took her hand and gave it a squeeze. “After the feast, you and me, we get out as fast as we can. Preferably on horses,” said Gendry.

Arya was about to answer when they were interrupted

“You two are plotting something, aren’t ya?” It was one of the two men who sat in front of the wagon. Arya and Gendry turned to look at him.

“Only our future, nothing that concerns you,” said Arya sharply. The man smirked at her.

“You thought no one would recognize you, is that right?” he leered.

"I think you must have me confused with someone else, sir, we have never met,” said Arya.

“Aye, that’s true enough, little lady. Little Lady St-”

He never finished her name before the second man stood up and stabbed him through the heart with a knife. He removed the knife as the man died, and tossed the body over the side of the wagon.

“The North remembers,” said the man, looking back at Arya. Arya nodded at him.

“Do you know him?” asked Gendry.

“No, but he knows me,” answered Arya.

Gendry leaned in close to Arya and lowered his voice to barely a whisper.

“I know you said Walder Frey won’t remember you, but it seems these two have”

“Gendry, we stick to the plan. We’ve come too far,”

“He won’t remember her, boy, or he won’t look at her long enough to be able to figure it out. It took me all this time and I watched you grow up, Arya Underfoot. That’s what they used to call you. Always running around after Theon and your brothers, never at your lessons with Sansa. It’s alright you don’t remember me, m’lady. We never officially met, I used to work in the stables at Winterfell,” he said.

“Why are you headed for the Frey’s?”

“A man needs to work, I’ve been making good money transporting people from the docks to the castle,”

“Why did you leave Winterfell?” asked Arya.

“I left when Theon attacked it and took over, I couldn’t work for him. I serve no one but the Starks,”

“Strange coincidence, we just happen to get in your wagon” said Arya.

“A happy one, I assure you. I will drop you and your friends at castle frey and be on my way, m’lady,”

They reached the gate not long after, Arya and Gendry hopped down.

“Thank you,” said Arya.

“Best of luck you two,” the man turned the wagon around and spurred his horses on without another word.

Arya and Gendry walked slowly towards the gate.

“Why does he get to call you m’lady?” asked Gendry.

“Shut up, you stupid bull. Now remember, I’m Amelia, you can still be Gendry. We’re friends traveling together-”

“Friends? Is that all we are _Amelia_?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean what we were talking about the morning after that first night on the ship,”

“And you think now is a good time to bring that up again?”

“Maybe not, but I do think we need to talk about it,” said Gendry.

“We will, ok? Once we’re done here we will talk about it,” said Arya just as they reached the gate.

“What’s your business here?” Asked the guard.

“I’m here to start my position, I’ve been hired on as a kitchen maid,” said Arya

“Got any papers proving that?” asked the guard.

“They were lost,”

“Then get lost yourself,” snapped the guard.

“The cook is expecting me,” said Arya, but the guard ignored her. Instead, he turned to Gendry. “And you?”

“Here to fight in the tournament, for the feast,” said Gendry.

The guard looked him up and down before nodding.

“You’ll find the tents in the training grounds, you can sign up there. Tell them your name, where you come from, and who to notify if you die. And you,” he said, turning to Arya, “I’ll escort you down to the kitchens myself and make sure the cook really is expecting you,” said the guard.

Gendry looked at Arya, wary of separating.

“Go, I’ll find you later,” said Arya, Gendry nodded at her, gave her hand a quick squeeze before letting go and walking off in the direction the guard indicated.

“Come on girl, kitchens are this way,” said the guard. Arya followed him across the yard and into the castle.

“Martha!....Martha!” called the guard.

“What?!”

“There’s a girl here, claims she’s been hired by you as a kitchen maid only she’s got no papers,” explained the guard.

“Where’s the girl?” asked Martha.

The kitchen was a madhouse, people running back and forth stirring pots and chopping vegetables; kneading dough and decorating cakes.

“I’m here,” said Arya.

“What are you called?”

“Amelia,” answered Arya.

“Well Amelia, can you make a meat pie?” asked Martha

“Yes ma’am, as good as any,” answered Arya.

“Get to it then,” said Martha before turning to the guard.

“I don’t care that she hasn’t got papers, I’m short-handed and have too much to do with this wedding feast,” said Martha.

“You’ll take responsibility for her then?” asked the guard.

“Yes, yes! Now get out of my kitchen,” said Martha, the guard nodded and left.

“Thank you,” said Arya to Martha.

“Get to work, girl,” answered Martha gruffly.

“What kind of meat should I use for the pies?” asked Arya.

“Whatever you can find,” answered Martha.

“I’ll go find some then,” said Arya, Martha nodded her assent and Arya left.

Unseen by Martha, Arya grabbed a tray of food as she walked out of the kitchen. She walked up up to the main part of the castle and started roaming the halls. She stopped the first guard she passed.

“Excuse me, sir, it’s my first day. I was told to bring this tray to Walder Frey’s sons but I’ve no idea where to find them. Can you help me?”

“They are in the elder’s chambers. Down this hall, the last on the right,”

“Thank you, sir,” said Arya with a small smile and a curtsy, she hurried on down the hallway. Arya entered the room and found Walder Frey’s sons, Black Walder and Loafer, standing at the window.

“Yes?” asked Black Walder.

“I brought up some food for you, my lords,” answered Arya, setting the tray down on the table.

“Aren’t you a pretty one, what’s your name?” asked Loafer. Arya smiled at him, and locked the door.

“What? What are you doing?” asked Loafer.

“My name is Arya Stark, do you know what that means?”

Black Walder and Loafer drew their swords.

“It means winter has come, for house Frey,” said Arya.

Quick as a heartbeat, she bounded across the room and stabbed Black Walder in the gut, taking his sword she turned to Loafer and slit his throat with Needle, dodging the blade he tried to thrust into her. As Loafer fell, she turned back to Black Walder and slit his throat for good measure. Then, she got to work.

* * *

Gendry watched his surroundings as he waited to sign himself up. There were hundreds of men around. Finally Gendry got to the front.

“Gendry Waters, I come from King’s Landing,” he told the man.

“Who do we notify if you die?”

“Amelia, she’s a kitchen maid in the castle,”

“And what will you fight with?”

“My hammer,”

Gendry held out his weapon for the man to see, he regarded it for a minute before nodding.

“Ever done one of these before?”

“No,”

“Alright, here’s what your in for. Most of these men around here aren’t competing. It’s limited to 100 competitors. First round is four groups of 25. You get in the ring and fight until one is left. Then round two, one on one fights. Then round three is the winners of round two. Not necessary to kill, just incapacitate, but killing is allowed. Best of luck, round one starts in an hour. You’re group one,” said the man.

“Thanks,” said Gendry before walking away. He spent the hour watching the other competitors as they warmed up, he kept to himself and didn’t speak to anyone.

“Group one! Get into the ring in the next minute or forfeit your right to compete!”

Gendry hurried into the ring with the other competitors, the fighting hadn’t even started yet and they were pushing and shoving each other. Gendry searched the watching crowd for Arya but didn’t see her, he hoped nothing had gone wrong on her end. Looking up he saw the man he presumed to be Walder Frey sitting on a decorative chair and drinking from a cup.

“Competitors, best of luck! I look forward to watching you kill each other…” Gendry looked around, most of the competitors had swords, a brave few had knives, and a very stupid few had no weapon at all. From what he could see, Gendry was the only one with a hammer.

“The only rule is, there are no rules! The tournament will commence...right...NOW!”

Swords clashed all around him, it was a matter of seconds before Gendry saw a man charge him. He sidestepped him easily and brained him with the hammer. Gendry continued to swing his hammer at men who got too close as he backed up towards the wall. Having the wall at his back kept people from being able to sneak up behind him. But it would be cowardly to just stand still at the wall as others fought around him, so Gendry moved along it, keeping it at his back as he moved. He hit people as he passed them, sometimes being so quick he stunned the people they were fighting with, before Gendry hit them too. In a matter of minutes, there were only two men left. Gendry watched as one cut off the others sword-arm before stabbing him in the gut. He was across the ring, and he looked up at Gendry as the man fell. The man gave out a war cry as he ran for Gendry. Gendry looked around the ground at the fallen and saw what he was looking for. Running to a fallen man, Gendry wrenched the knife out of his grasp and threw it at the approaching man. The dagger hit it’s mark cutting right through the guy’s throat to the hilt, the point sticking out the other end. Gendry was breathing hard, covered in sweat and some blood, but he was miraculously unharmed. The crowd was cheering for him. He looked up at Walder Frey as the crowd died down.

“Well fought, young man, what is your name?” asked Walder.

“Gendry, M’lord,” answered Gendry.

“Well Gendry, congratulations, you made it to round two. Now get out of the ring so we can clean up and get the next group in here,”

“Thank you, m’lord,” Gendry bowed and left the ring.

“Good job son, go to the kitchens and get something to eat, you have a few hours before round two. Tell Martha that Bertha sent you,”

“Thanks,” answered Gendry before heading to the kitchens. Once inside, he spotted Arya immediately, she was putting a tray of pies into the oven.

“Gendry! Is everything alright?” she asked, wiping her hands on her apron.

“Yeah I’m fine, round one of the fighting just ended. Bertha sent me to get something to eat before round two starts,” he said the last bit to Martha.

“Aye, there’s stew on the stove, help yourself. Amelia, once your done with those pies you can take a break and join him,” said Martha,

“Pies just went into the oven,” said Arya.

“Then you can join him now until it’s time for them to come out,” said Martha. Hearing this, Gendry put down the bowl he had just filled for himself and grabbed a second, spooning stew into Arya’s he gave her even a little more than he gave himself.

“You’re still too skinny, please just eat,” said Gendry, shoving the bowl into her hands before she could protest.

“Come on, let’s eat outside,” said Arya. Gendry and Arya walked outside and sat on the first bench they found.

“How was round one?”

“Chaotic…”

Gendry told her what happened and she nodded along,

“That was smart,” she said when he finished.

“I have my moments. What about you? How are you doing in the kitchens?” asked Gendry,

“So far so good,” Arya looked around them to make sure no one was listening “he doesn’t know it yet but Walder Frey’s last surviving sons are dead. He thinks they went on a hunt and will be back by the feast tonight,” said Arya.

“What, already?!” said Gendry, Arya nodded,

“What did you do with the bodies?” asked Gendry.

“Those meat pies I have in the oven? Don’t touch them,” said Arya, it took Gendry a minute.

“Fucking hell…” he swore.

“Are you still with me?” asked Arya, Gendry swallowed and nodded.

“I am yours, Arya, for as long as you’ll have me,” he said softly. Then Arya did something that shocked him, she leaned forward and kissed his cheek.

“I should get back to the kitchen, and you have two more fights to win. Don’t die on me now, Bull,” she said before hurrying off, taking their empty bowls with her.

Gendry was too stunned to answer her before she was gone. He shook his head to clear it and headed back for the arena. Martha looked up as Arya reentered the kitchen, she hurried to the oven and checked on her pies, they still had a while before they would be ready to come out.

“While you’re waiting on them you can get started on something else, Amelia,” said Martha.

“How about I prepare the wine?” Arya asked and Martha nodded.

“Wine cellar is the door on the right, everything is in there,”

“This is almost too easy,” muttered Arya under her breath and she slipped her hand into her pocket and clutched the small bottle of poison she had brought with her.

* * *

Round two took Gendry less than five seconds to win, he killed the man with one swing of his hammer before he could even raise his sword. It was so quick the crowd was disappointed.

“Well, I did say no rules, but do try and make the fight last a little longer in round three,” said Walder, Gendry bowed “M’lord,” he said curtly.

“Because that was so short, you don’t get a break. Edric, get in here! Round three starts now,”

Gendry turned as a man about his size walked into the arena. He carried one of the largest swords Gendry had ever seen, he was sure it would be strong enough to block the path of his hammer. There was a tense silence as the two men stared at each other.

“Well, get on with it then,” ordered Walder.

With a battle cry, Edric charged Gendry with his sword held high. Gendry side-stepped him just as he had his first kill of the day, but unlike the first Edric spun around and blocked Gendry’s hammer with his sword. Pushing Gendry off he struck again, so fast Gendry was forced to use his hammer like a sword on defense.

_You should stand side-face_

came Arya’s voice in his head and he shifted his body so that he was standing sideways. He swung his hammer around again but Edirc ducked and spun around him, pulling out a small knife he slashed at Gendry’s side, making a small but deep cut. Gendry cried out and brought his hammer down to swing at Edric’s legs. It was a move Edric wasn’t expecting, he thought Gendry was dropping his hammer in pain. Gendry swept his legs out from under him and Edric landed on the ground with a thud. With one last swing of the hammer, Gendry brought it down on Edric’s head. Panting, he looked up at Walder Frey and wondered if that fight had been long enough for him. Walder Frey stared at him for a minute, his smirk unnerved Gendry.

“Congratulations Gendry, the Twins’ Champion. The feast will start in half an hour, you will sit at my right hand. Now go get cleaned up,” said Walder,

With a hand held at his side, Gencry exited the cheering arena to find Arya waiting for him.

“I saw what happened, you fought well. How bad is the cut?” she asked him.

“Not bad,” said Gendry, Arya took his hand and pulled it away from his side.

“You need stitches, come on, I’ll sew you up,”

“You hate sewing,”

“Doesn’t mean I don’t know how,” Arya took his hand and led him to an empty tent with the supplies they needed.

“Shirt off,” she said, Gendry smirked.

“As you wish,” he said. Arya didn’t dignify his remark with a response, she just got to work. Within minutes she was done.

“There,” she said, tying off the thread and cutting the excess away,”

“Thank you,” said Gendry softly, Arya looked up at him.

“You’re welcome,” Their faces were a breath apart.

“Arya,” said Gendry, his voice low.

Suddenly Arya surged forward and kissed him, her arms wrapped around his neck. His hands immediately went to her tiny waist as he kissed her back. As they kissed, Gendry moved his arms so he was hugging Arya to him, getting her as close as possible to him. They finally broke apart a minute later, both breathing hard.

“I am yours and you are mine,” said Arya softly, Gendry smiled.

“I am yours and you are mine,” he repeated back to her, leaning in and stealing another kiss.

“Amelia!” called a voice outside the tent “Where are you?! The fight’s over and Martha needs everyone back in the kitchen!”

“I should go,” said Arya.

“Be careful, Arya,” urged Gendry.

“I’ll see you at the feast,” said Arya before rushing out of the tent.

Gendry’s smile never left his face as he washed up in the tent and put his shirt back on. Gendry exited the tent to find a maid waiting for him.

“I’m to escort you to the feast,” she said.

“Thanks,” said Gendry with a nod.

The girl turned without another word and Gendry followed her. He wouldn’t have needed the escort, he could hear the feast as soon as he walked into the castle. He walked into the room and his eyes immediately found Arya, she was serving wine to everyone, but he made himself look away quickly.

“Apologies for my lateness, m’lord,” said Gendry when he got up to the main table.

Walder Frey brushed off his apologies with a wave of his hand.

“You’re just in time, sit and have a drink. Bring the wine!” called Walder Frey.

Gendry sat down on Frey’s right and took notice of the meat pies on the platter in front of him. Arya came forward with a new pitcher and poured wine first into Walder Frey’s cup and then into Gendry’s.

“It’s safe,” she muttered to him, her lips barely moving.

“A toast!” called Walder Frey “To a good tourny, a good feast, and a large family,” said Walder Frey.

“To your new wife,” offered Gendry.

“Yes, to my new wife, may she bear me more sons and daughters. Hopefully prettier than the last lot I got,” said Walder.

“Let the feast commence, enjoy the food and drink to the health of us all,” Finished, he took a drink from his cup and every man in the room followed suit, including Gendry.

“Now eat and be merry!” he called, but his men weren’t listening anymore.

There was a clatter as goblets crashed to the floor and the men began to clutch at their throats, coughing and sputtering. They fell over one by one, shaking on the ground.

“What on earth is the matter with all of you? Even my moron sons can hold their liquor better than that. Where are my sons?” asked Frey, just now realising he couldn’t see them.

“Here, my lord,” answered Arya.

“Where? I don’t see them!”

“There right here my lord,” repeated Arya, Frey just stared at her.

“ _Here_ , my lord,” pointing at the meat pies.

Frey slowly lifted up the top crust on one of the pies and found a finger.

“What?” he asked, not entirely sure what was happening.

“They weren’t easy to carve, especially not Black Walder,” said Arya, she put the pitcher down and picked up one of the knives on the table, pulled Frey’s head back by his hair and placing the blade against his throat.

“Who are you?” choked out Frey.

“My name is Arya Stark,” she spoke loud enough for the whole room, every man who lay dying, could hear her,

“I want you to know that. I want you to know that the last thing you are going to see is a Stark smiling down on you as you all die. You should have known, leave one wolf behind and the sheep are never safe. Winter has come for House Frey,” proclaimed Arya.

Gendry had stood up from the table and was standing behind Arya.

“Now you’ll watch your men die, as I was forced to watch them kill my brother Robb and my mother Catylen Stark. You broke guests rights in the worst way. Your men paraded their bodies and celebrated, and you can be sure I will celebrate this,” as she finished talking, the last man who had drunk the poisoned wine died and Arya slit Frey’s throat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is one of my favorites so far! What did you think? Please let me know in the comments!!!
> 
> Thank you for reading, and a very special thanks to all those who have subscribed or bookmarked or left a comment on a previous chapter for this story!


End file.
